From here I will speak with a lawyer to see how I can most cleanly severe ties with this contractor.

One of our observations is how much easier it is to exit the rat race from a low salary profession like janitor as opposed to the high salary positions like pilot or lawyer.

I see my greatest needs as getting a good CPA, lawyer, property management company, handyman, etc.Thanks in advance - and I look forward to chatting with everyone on the forum and possibly meeting in person!

 - RE-experienced/friendly lawyers do entity creation consistent with the state laws that govern their construction and governance

I think maybe the best route is to just give him a contract (if I can find/create one) with the offer and details and tell him to read over it and maybe take it to a lawyer or title company to read over it with him and then get back with me if he's interested or has any questions??

Having these conversations with the CPA as I converted my books has completely changed the way I think about my record keeping, how I take draws, how I may structure partnerships and investors going forward....Other than perhaps a good real estate lawyer, from my experience, a good CPA is critical to a young real estate investor's performance. 

The primary Team members are Attornies/Lawyers, real estate Brokers/Agents, CPA's (or accountants you trust), Inspectors, Property Manaders, General Contractors, and Handymen.  

So I took initiative and joined the BiggerPocket community :) My goals here in BiggerPockets is to meet both the inexperience and experience members in all fields (realtors, brokers, lawyers, property manager, CPA, investors and lenders) to connect and share their knowledge in this competitive field. 

People use HELOCs and cash out refinance proceeds for this purpose all the time.As a one-off and not a habitual thing, and if it's someone you have an existing relationship with, most folks say you can be a private mortgage lender without any licensing stuff, but that is not strictly speaking my area of expertise, and of course you should speak with a lawyer before getting out of the bed in the morning, and certainly here too. 

Check with your lawyer etc.